How do I turn stability control back on?

Press the stability control button again — usually marked with the skidding car symbol, sometimes with the letters ESP, ESC or VSC — or find it in the vehicle settings menu on cars without a physical button. On almost every car the system also re-enables itself automatically when you switch the ignition off and on again, so if the lamp survives a restart, something is keeping it off and it needs looking at.

Does the ESP OFF light fail an MOT?

No. A stability control system that the driver has switched off is not a defect, and the manual tells testers to fail only where they are certain the lamp indicates an actual malfunction. The one thing to be careful of is the switch: an ESC switch that is damaged or not functioning correctly is a major defect in its own right under section 7.12. Switch the system back on before the test so there is no ambiguity about which lamp the tester is looking at.

Should I ever turn stability control off?

Rarely, and briefly. The genuine case is when you are stuck in snow, mud or deep gravel and need the wheels to spin to dig through to grip, or when rocking a car out of a hole — stability and traction control will cut the power in exactly the situation where you want it. For all normal road driving, on any surface, leave it on. It intervenes far faster and far more precisely than a driver can.

Why does my ESC OFF light come on by itself?

Two possibilities. Some cars automatically reduce or disable intervention in a sport or off-road driving mode, so selecting a mode can light it. The other is that the system has disabled itself because of a fault elsewhere — in which case the fault lamp is usually lit too, and the OFF lamp is a symptom rather than a setting. If it appears without you touching anything and will not clear on a restart, have it scanned.

Dashboard warning light

Stability control off light

Last updated 27 July 2026

Quick answer

Stability control has been switched off, either by the button on the dashboard or through the vehicle settings menu. Nothing is broken — but the system that corrects a skid is not going to intervene until it is switched back on.

What to do: No action needed
Can you drive?: Yes

Why it is amber

A system has reported a malfunction, or something needs attention. The car is usually still driveable, but the fault will not clear itself and several amber lamps are an automatic MOT failure.

What turns it on

Pressing the stability control button, holding it down (on many cars a short press disables traction control only and a long press disables the full stability system), or turning it off in a settings menu. Some cars also disable it automatically in certain modes, or after a related fault elsewhere in the system.

What to do about it

Press the button again, or switch the ignition off and on. On almost every car stability control re-enables itself on the next start, so a lamp that survives a restart is worth a second look.
Check the handbook if you cannot find a button. An increasing number of cars only allow the system to be switched off through a touchscreen menu, and it can be left off by accident while somebody is exploring the settings.
If it will not switch back on, treat it as a fault rather than a setting. A system that refuses to re-enable is usually reporting a problem, and the fault version of the lamp may be on as well.
Switch it back on before an MOT. It is not a defect in itself, but a tester needs to see that the system is healthy, and leaving it off makes that harder to establish.

Can you keep driving?

Yes

Nothing is faulty and the car is exactly as it left the factory with the system disabled. The only thing to be aware of is what you are driving without: no automatic correction if the back steps out, and no traction control on a wet pull-away or an icy hill. Switch it back on for normal road use, and expect to have to do it again if the switch itself has failed.

What causes it

The button pressed deliberately, or knocked accidentally
The system turned off in a settings menu and forgotten
A long press where a short press was intended, disabling more than the driver expected
A sport or off-road driving mode that reduces or removes intervention as part of the mode
A failed stability control switch, which can leave the system stuck off

Does it fail an MOT?

No.

Switching stability control off is not an MOT defect, and the inspection manual is explicit that a tester should only fail a car where they are certain the lamp indicates a malfunction rather than a system the driver has turned off. There is one indirect route to a failure: an ESC switch that is damaged or not functioning correctly is itself a major defect under section 7.12, so a car stuck with the system off because the button has failed can fail on the switch. Turn the system back on before the test so the tester can see the fault lamp behaves normally.

Common questions

How do I turn stability control back on?: Press the stability control button again — usually marked with the skidding car symbol, sometimes with the letters ESP, ESC or VSC — or find it in the vehicle settings menu on cars without a physical button. On almost every car the system also re-enables itself automatically when you switch the ignition off and on again, so if the lamp survives a restart, something is keeping it off and it needs looking at.
Does the ESP OFF light fail an MOT?: No. A stability control system that the driver has switched off is not a defect, and the manual tells testers to fail only where they are certain the lamp indicates an actual malfunction. The one thing to be careful of is the switch: an ESC switch that is damaged or not functioning correctly is a major defect in its own right under section 7.12. Switch the system back on before the test so there is no ambiguity about which lamp the tester is looking at.
Should I ever turn stability control off?: Rarely, and briefly. The genuine case is when you are stuck in snow, mud or deep gravel and need the wheels to spin to dig through to grip, or when rocking a car out of a hole — stability and traction control will cut the power in exactly the situation where you want it. For all normal road driving, on any surface, leave it on. It intervenes far faster and far more precisely than a driver can.
Why does my ESC OFF light come on by itself?: Two possibilities. Some cars automatically reduce or disable intervention in a sport or off-road driving mode, so selecting a mode can light it. The other is that the system has disabled itself because of a fault elsewhere — in which case the fault lamp is usually lit too, and the OFF lamp is a symptom rather than a setting. If it appears without you touching anything and will not clear on a restart, have it scanned.

This is general guidance, not a diagnosis. Manufacturers draw the same system differently and reuse symbols for more than one function, so check the handbook for your own car before acting on anything here.

Check what your car has actually failed on

Free MOT history for any UK registration, straight from DVSA records.